Smooth background?

[Oompa Loompa]

I am trying to make a 3D background for my leopard geckos, but the catch is that I don't want them to be able to climb it. They're good at getting up, but they can't get down well, and I don't want to risk them being injured.

Has anybody made a 3D background that's perfectly smooth, maybe even slippery? Could I make a styrofoam background and put something over it to make it too slick for them to climb?

Thanks,
Drew

 

[Steve_C]

Only thing to coat it with is something like Pond Armor, but honestly I would think a coated stryo BG with pond armor would probably be no more slick than just plain glass most likely.

 

[markstrimaran]

Make it a water fall.

 

[J. H.]

Put it behind the glass, outside the tank.

 

[wannadivesteve]

I think you'll have difficulty finding something smooth enough to not climb.

Years ago I read about a guy who did territory/aggressiveness/etc studies on house geckos in old aircraft or weapons bunkers in Hawaii. He found the only way to keep the geckos where he wanted was by making Vaseline trail barriers, they apparently couldn't stand the stuff. That way he could keep varying mixes of males and females together to study.

I don't know if a layer of Vaseline up high is a viable option or not?

 

[Oompa Loompa]

I think you'll have difficulty finding something smooth enough to not climb.

Years ago I read about a guy who did territory/aggressiveness/etc studies on house geckos in old aircraft or weapons bunkers in Hawaii. He found the only way to keep the geckos where he wanted was by making Vaseline trail barriers, they apparently couldn't stand the stuff. That way he could keep varying mixes of males and females together to study.

I don't know if a layer of Vaseline up high is a viable option or not?

Little bit different - I'm working with leopard geckos, not house geckos. Basically, leopard geckos and a few other species have claws, rather than adhesive toe pads, so they can't climb quite as well. I just need something the claws can't dig into, hence why it's gotta be smooth.

 

[Oompa Loompa]

Only thing to coat it with is something like Pond Armor, but honestly I would think a coated stryo BG with pond armor would probably be no more slick than just plain glass most likely.

Well since they are leopard geckos - they have claws rather than adhesive toe pads. So if the claws can't stick into it (like glass), they can't climb it. So perhaps I could make my styrofoam background, then cover it with clear Pond Armor?

Make it a water fall.

Afraid it won't fit with the tank's theme. It'll have a semi-arid theme to it,the only form of water will be a rock water bowl.

Put it behind the glass, outside the tank.

It'll be in a wooden vivarium, no glass anywhere.

 

[Steve_C]

Ahh okay, I actually had no idea those had claws, I'm not too familiar with all the different species. So if they don't have the sticky toe pads and have claws then I think you would probably be okay to do a foam BG with Pond Armor over it then.

 

[Leebtattoos]

I would make one out of foam and coated in pond armor after painting desired look.

To keep them from climbing high enough to hurt themselves, the first 5-10 inched would b an outcropping where the wall is parallel to the floor. PA is fairly slick and hard enough I don’t believe a leopard geckos limited climbing ability would allow them to climb inverted like that. Unless you have some mission impossible geckos.

 

[J. H.]

Cut up an old screen door and staple it to a wooden frame to make a lid, and it won't matter if they can climb it. That's what I did when I kept land snails.